In August 2016, Florida State University football players went to a middle school in Tallahassee to mingle with students.
Many young kids consider the Seminoles football team the pinnacle of success, and one player's actions caused a mom to label him a “hero.” In a Facebook post, Leah Paske reflected on her own time in school and how cruel kids can be.
Admittedly, she had feelings of anxiety for her own middle school-aged son but said she's sometimes “grateful” for his autism and heartbreakingly described why:
That may sound like a terrible thing to say, but in some ways I think, I hope, it shields him. He doesn't seem to notice when people stare at him when he flaps his hands. He doesn't seem to notice that he doesn't get invited to birthday parties anymore. And he doesn't seem to mind if he eats lunch alone.
While he didn't “seem to mind” that on most days he ate lunch alone, as his mom, it made her feel sad. So when a friend sent her a photo of her son's lunch buddy one day, it had a huge impact on her, and she posted it to Facebook.
That lunch buddy was Travis Rudolph, a wide receiver on the team. Paske, who isn't a footabll fan, had “tears streaming down [her] face” and commented on the post:
I'm not sure what exactly made this incredibly kind man share a lunch table with my son, but I'm happy to say that it will not soon be forgotten. This is one day I didn't have to worry if my sweet boy ate lunch alone, because he sat across from someone who is a hero in many eyes.
Rudolph explained to ABC News that he asked the boy, Bo, if he could sit next to him and that the two had a great conversation.
The wide receiver is the cousin of kick returner Devin Hester, who last played with the Seattle Seahawks, and understands the impact college and NFL players have. Rudolph told ABC News:
“I was just a kid not too long ago, and I remember what the impact was of guys that played in college and in the NFL coming back to us. So I feel like maybe I can change someone's life or I can make someone a better person or make someone want to be great or be like me, or even better.”
Unfortunately, Rudolph's life took a tragic turn the weekend before the NFL draft. According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, his father, Darryl Rudolph, was killed in an accidental shooting.
While doing repairs in the back of a nightclub, a gun went off while a colleague was moving it off a shelf. The bullet reportedly went through a wall and hit Darryl in the neck.
Rudolph still held a draft party, and Bo was there with him.
Ultimately, Rudolph wasn't drafted, but his dreams of being in the NFL are still very much alive thanks to one New York team. The New York Post reported that the New York Giants signed the wide receiver as a free agent.